Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Apparently the same incident happened with yellow squash and zucchini when I found those freaky looking squashchini things last weekend. I didn't know what I was going to make with them but I had to buy them.

I decided on an idea tonight after seeing a recipe for stuffed zucchini in Joy of Cooking and noticing it cooked at the same temp as the pork tenderloin I was cooking so I could do them both on the Big Green Egg.

2 ea summer squash (try to get the largest that you can)1 Tbsp butter1 ea green onion, finely chopped (white and green parts)2 cloves garlic, finely chopped1 Tbsp dry white wine1 ea egg, beaten1/2 cup bread crumbs1/4 cup fresh herbs chopped (I used basil, thyme, and parsley)1/2 cup Locust Grove Galloway Reserve Cheese, shredded (sub a quality sheep milk cheese like pecorino romano)2 tsp kosher salt2 tsp cayenne pepper (I used my home made ground chili pepper mix)Cut the squash in half lengthwise and scrape out the core, leaving a shell like below reserving the pulp. TIP: If the squash is firm, you can run a paring knife around the shell before using a spoon or tiny melon baller to scoop out the pulp.Steam the shells with the hollow side down for 5 minutes. TIP: You don't have to have a steamer to do this. I used a large sauce pan with a 1/2 cup of water, put a metal colander over it and covered that with a glass pot lid.

Saute the green onion in the butter over medium high heat for 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic and chopped squash pulp, cook another 1-2 minutes. The pan should be almost dry. Add the wine and give a quick stir. TIP: If you want this to be more of a main course than side dish, skip the squash pulp and add 2 ounces of browned chorizo sausage.

Put that mixture into a bowl and mix together with the egg, bread crumbs, herbs, cheese, salt and pepper. Spoon into the cooked squash shells. Sprinkle with a bit more of the cayenne pepper.Place in a shallow baking dish and add enough liquid (water, broth or wine) to come close to the edges of the squash. Place in a 400f grill or oven with indirect heat. The problem was that I was also cooking a pork tenderloin over DIRECT heat at the same time. No problem, I put the baker dish on top of a cast iron cornbread mold to block the direct heat from underneath like this....Cook for 30 minutes.

That's the squash recipe, but since I was also cooking a tenderloin, with 21 minutes left, I added the pork tenderloin. I had already trimmed the silver skin off like this.

Then I rubbed it with a mix of 2 parts ground red pepper, 2 parts kosher salt, 1 part cumin. I grilled it, turning it a few times during those last 21 minutes.While that was going on, I made a quick cheating pan sauce by sauteing 1/4 cup onion in butter, deglazing with 1/4 cup dry Marsala wine, when it was almost evaporated, added 1/2 cup chicken stock. I reduced that by half and then seasoned it with salt & pepper. I whisked in 1 Tbsp of butter.

By now, the stuffed squash had cooked for 30 minutes and the tenderloin was at 140-145 internal so I pulled them both off and let them rest for five minutes. I added the juices from the rested pork to the pan sauce.I sliced the tenderloin thinly and served it on a plate with the squash. I dusted it with a little more of the homemade ground red pepper and drizzled some of the pan sauce over the pork.NOTES:It was a very good dish but I would make a few changes the next time. For example, I'd do the chorizo with the squash. Also, I'd take the squash out of the baking dish in the last 5 minutes and finish cooking them over direct heat just to get some char on the bottom of them.

I used pastured pork for the first time. It was definitely different than the grain fed pork I usually use. Cooking to the same time and internal temps, it looked more done, was still as moist, but not as tender. Not tough, but just a different texture.

I was thrilled with the flavor that the ground red chili pepper I made this weekend came across in both of these recipes.

As always, looks great Chris. I do remember that commercial. I have never seen one of those freaky squashchini's but man do they look good with that stuffing mixture. I've been eating up leftovers all week and it's about to kill me. One more night and I'm off to the store for a new adventure.

You're speaking my language - cayenne, chorizo, pork loins. Terrific! I'm not so great at steaming so I'll have to look in my over-stuffed kitchen cabinet to see what I've got, but I plan to put this on my table sometime soon! Thanks! - Gary

From what I hear a lot of home gardeners are having problems with their squash and zucchini getting frisky. Those things need some birth control or something because they are doing some serious copulating while we are all asleep!

Love those summer squash! Your recipe looks wonderful. I'm definitely making it even if I have to use regular zucchini. That's one of those sides that can definitely be the meal if there is a vegetarian around. Yum! :-)

I'm loving the stuffed squash as I'm "zuchini rich" these days. But I loved the demo on trimming a pork loin. (sigh) I wish I had you around to cook for me. It's good, but not the same on a gas grill. :/

Those are the coolest looking squash! Almost like they are confused about whether they are zucchini or summer squash. I have been harvesting lots of zucchini and am constantly looking for new things to do with them. I never thought about stuffing them. Thanks for the idea!